Why Am I Even Doing A Kickstarter?!

I don’t think I’ve ever procrastinated something more than launching this Kickstarter! I’ve had the description written out, the rewards set, the budget for the project so I could know what the goal needed to be, etc for over a year and a half.

Vulnerability is the birthplace of innovation, creativity and change 

— Brené Brown

So why did I put it off for so long?!?!

For one, the fear of a potentially super public failure. Two, the idea of asking family and friends to financially back this artistic endeavor of mine sounded like a miserable thing to do.

Music, and really any creative project, requires a lot of vulnerability and willingness to put yourself out there to begin with. And I’m fine with that mostly because at this point, I only release things that I’m super proud of to show the world. I’ve grown as an artist in that I just make music that I really want to listen to with the assumption that if I love it, other people who have similar musical tastes will too. And I can honestly say that even though I’ve heard those songs a million times from the time the ideas were conceived til now, I still love listening to To Santa and Little Brothers; it’s really good pop music with depth and a storyline to match and that’s my favorite kind (see The 1975, Frank Ocean, and Coldplay) (Mylo Xyloto is one of my favorite albums of all-time).

“You can’t be passive-aggressive if you want to succeed in this industry. I need you to step it up and be assertive so I can have a good story to tell about you when we’re at the Grammys someday” 

— one of the VP’s of A&R at Atlantic

Kickstarters are a whole other level, though! There’s only one way to succeed and that’s to tell everyone and ask for people’s support and that’s uncomfortable. When I told my dad about the project, his response was, “Shouldn’t you want to be self-sufficient instead of asking people for money?” And there is some truth and wisdom to that, but to an extent. Although our society values independence and self-reliance, artistry and really any entrepreneurial project requires support. The cool thing about Kickstarters is that there’s value exchanged rather than receiving donations. I love this tweet that I saw the other day…(I love Girl Scout cookies too)

picture from my debut show as Class Jackson

And that’s what I have loved about the challenges and grind of sharing my project with people. Besides getting catch up and reconnect with a lot of people, I’m reminded of how much I want to succeed in music. I’m reminded that my music is valuable, that people connected with the last EP and will connect with this one. I’m reminded of how much I’ve already given towards my music career and how miniscule asking for support is in comparison. And being in LA has taught me one important thing…I’M GOOD AT THIS! Getting to be in and around the industry at a major label level and getting affirmation of my talent as a singer, songwriter, and guitarist has been beyond encouraging. And getting to hear the excitement and positive feedback from sharing the demos and acoustic versions of the songs that will be on the Red Roses EP gives me so much motivation to get this project done and done well!

So yea, I’m asking for people to support my Kickstarter…both financially and sharing it with friends and family! You’ll love the result and it’ll be worth it! Red Roses is about to be one of mine (and your) favorite collections of pop jams!